Etymology Explorer › English

Where does “ballister” come from?

ballister (English) comes from Latin ballista, from Ancient Greek βαλλίστρα, from Ancient Greek βάλλω, from Proto-Hellenic *gʷəlnō.

ballister (English): A crossbow

Definitions

  1. A crossbow

Ancestry of “ballister”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Latinballistaballista
2Ancient Greekβαλλίστρα—
3Ancient GreekβάλλωI throw, cast, hurl; I let fall; I strike, touch
4Proto-Hellenic*gʷəlnō—
Every word from Proto-Hellenic *gʷəlnō →